Commentary

• Montesquieu

  - Lowenthal, David. "Montesquieu." In History of Political Philosophy. 3rd ed., edited by Leo Strauss and Joseph Cropsey. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987.

• The Modern Doctrine of Executive Power

  - Mansfield, Harvey C. “The Modern Doctrine of Executive Power.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 17, no. 2 (April 1, 1987): 237–252.
  When executive power is understood in its essential ambivalence between the weak, formal executive of theory and the strong, informal executive in practice, a quick history of the doctrine necessary to establish this ambivalence can be constructed: from… More

• Montesquieu’s Comparative Politics and the Spirit of American Constitutionalism

  - Cohler, Anne M. Montesquieu’s Comparative Politics and the Spirit of American Constitutionalism. Lawrence, Kan.: University Press of Kansas, 1988.

• Taming the Prince: The Ambivalence of Modern Executive Power

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  Mansfield, Harvey Claflin. Taming the Prince: The Ambivalence of Modern Executive Power. New York: Free Press, 1989.
  This survey of Western political thought ranges from Aristotle to “The Federalist Papers”, showing how the doctrine of executive power arose and how it has developed to the present day. Although there were various “proto-executives”,… More

• Confronting the Constitution: The Challenge to Locke, Montesquieu, Jefferson, and the Federalists from Utilitarianism, Historicism, Marxism, Freudianism, Pragmatism, Existentialism

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  Bloom, Allan David, and Steven J Kautz. Confronting the Constitution: The Challenge to Locke, Montesquieu, Jefferson, and the Federalists from Utilitarianism, Historicism, Marxism, Freudianism, Pragmatism, Existentialism. Washington, D.C.: AEI Press, 1990.
  The 17 essays in this volume examine first the precepts of the Founding Fathers and their mentors. Then the most significant preconstitutional ideas are outlined, together with analyses of how they harmonize with the Constitution and how they undermine it.

• Liberal Democracy and Political Science

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  Ceaser, James W. Liberal Democracy and Political Science. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992.
  Do political scientists in a liberal democracy bear a special responsibility that goes beyond their academic pursuits? Ceaser, a scholar of American political parties, argues that they do, and he challenges colleagues and students to reexamine what they do as… More

• Montesquieu and the New Republicanism

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  Shklar, Judith N. "Montesquieu and the New Republicanism." In Machiavelli and Republicanism, edited by Gisela Bock, Quentin Skinner, and Maurizio Viroli. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
  Shklar analyzes Montesquieu’s distinctive republicanism and its legacy, especially in relation to that of Machiavelli.

• An Intellectual History of Liberalism

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  Manent, Pierre. An Intellectual History of Liberalism. Translated by Rebecca Balinski. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1994.
  From the publisher: Highlighting the social tensions that confront the liberal tradition, Pierre Manent draws a portrait of what we, citizens of modern liberal democracies, have become. For Manent, a discussion of liberalism encompasses the foundations of… More

• Constitutionalism and the Separation of Powers

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  Vile, M. J. C. Constitutionalism and the Separation of Powers. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 1998.
  Arguably no political principle has been more central than the separation of powers to the evolution of constitutional governance in Western democracies. In the definitive work on the subject, M. J. C. Vile traces the history of the doctrine from its rise… More

• Montesquieu on Federalism and Anglo-Gothic Constitutionalism

  - Ward, Lee. “Montesquieu on Federalism and Anglo-Gothic Constitutionalism.” Publius 37, no. 4 (October 1, 2007): 551–577.
  The common perception that Montesquieu is not a major theorist of federalism is due both to the peripheral nature of his account of confederate republics and his praise of the unitary British Constitution in the “Spirit of the Laws.” This study… More

• The Spirit of Separate Powers in Montesquieu

  - Krause, Sharon. “The Spirit of Separate Powers in Montesquieu.” The Review of Politics 62, no. 2 (April 1, 2000): 231–265.
  Montesquieu’s theory of separate powers is elaborated in a discussion of the constitution of England in Book XI, chapter 6 of The Spirit of the Laws, which is by far the most discussed section of that work. Many commentators have interpreted the English… More

• The Uncertain Inevitability of Decline in Montesquieu

  - Krause, Sharon R. “The Uncertain Inevitability of Decline in Montesquieu.” Political Theory 30, no. 5 (October 1, 2002): 702–727.
  Krause examines Montesquieu’s understanding of regime decline.

• Montesquieu: Critique of Republicanism?

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  Spector, Céline. “Montesquieu: Critique of Republicanism?” Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy 6, no. 1 (2003): 38–53.
  The singular position of Montesquieu’s political philosophy seems to raise the question: Isn’t the opposition between republicanism and liberalism a largely artificial one? On the one hand, the description of the republican vivere civile in… More

• The Cloaking of Power: Montesquieu, Blackstone, and the Rise of Judicial Activism

  - Carrese, Paul, The Cloaking of Power Montesquieu, Blackstone, and the Rise of Judicial Activism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003.
  From the publisher: How did the US judiciary become so powerful—powerful enough that state and federal judges once vied to decide a presidential election? What does this prominence mean for the law, constitutionalism, and liberal democracy? In The Cloaking… More

• Montesquieu’s Complex Natural Right and Moderate Liberalism: The Roots of American Moderation

  - Carrese, Paul. “Montesquieu’s Complex Natural Right and Moderate Liberalism: The Roots of American Moderation.” Polity 36, no. 2 (January 1, 2004): 227–250.
  The diversity in twentieth-century scholarship on Montesquieu’s The Spirit of Laws helps to confirm his own appreciation for complexity, synthesis, and balance in both political theory and practice. This is the overlooked meaning of… More

• Montesquieu on Slavery

  - Schaub, Diana J. “Montesquieu on Slavery.” Perspectives on Political Science 34, no. 2 (Spring 2005): 70–78.
  Schaub studies Montesquieu’s erotic liberalism and unveils the triple-despotism–domestic, political, and spiritual–that The Persian Letters portrays and ridicules. She closely tracks Montesquieu on big issues such as his shifting… More

• Laws, Passion, and the Attractions of Right Action by Sharon Krause

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  Krause, Sharon R. “Laws, Passion, and the Attractions of Right Action in Montesquieu.” Philosophy & Social Criticism 32, no. 2 (March 1, 2006): 211–230.
  This article examines Montesquieu’s concept of natural law and treatment of legal customs in conjunction with his theory of moral psychology. It explores his effort to entwine the rational procedural quality of laws with the substantive principles that… More

• Montesquieu and His Legacy

  - Kingston, Rebecca, ed. Montesquieu and His Legacy. Albany: SUNY Press, 2009.
  From the publisher: Montesquieu (1689-1755) is regarded as one of the most important thinkers of the Enlightenment. His Lettres persanes and L’Esprit des lois have been read by students and scholars throughout the last two centuries. While many have… More

• Soft Despotism, Democracy’s Drift: Montesquieu, Rousseau, Tocqueville, and the Modern Prospect

  - Rahe, Paul Anthony. Soft Despotism, Democracy’s Drift: Montesquieu, Rousseau, Tocqueville, and the Modern Prospect. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2009.
  From the publisher: In 1989, the Cold War abruptly ended and it seemed as if the world was at last safe for democracy. But a spirit of uneasiness, discontent, and world-weariness soon arose and has persisted in Europe, in America, and elsewhere for two… More

• Political Ontology and Institutional Design in Montesquieu and Rousseau

  - Williams, David Lay. “Political Ontology and Institutional Design in Montesquieu and Rousseau.” American Journal of Political Science 54, no. 2 (April 1, 2010): 525–542.
  Historians of political thought have been puzzled by Montesquieu’s simultaneous appeals to the diversity of human practices and eternal norms of justice. Isaiah Berlin famously referred to this as an impassable “contradiction” burdening his… More

• Civilising International Politics: Republicanism and the World Outside

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  Long, Katya. “Civilising International Politics: Republicanism and the World Outside.” Millennium - Journal of International Studies 38, no. 3 (May 1, 2010): 773–796.
  The link between republicanism and international relations theory is far from obvious. Among the many schools of contemporary theories of international relations there is not one that makes any explicit reference to republicanism. However, during the… More

• Alexis de Tocqueville and the Two-Founding Thesis

  - Ceaser, James W. “Alexis de Tocqueville and the Two-Founding Thesis.” The Review of Politics 73, no. 2 (April 1, 2011): 219–243.
  Alexis de Tocqueville’s account of the formation of the American regime identifies two constitutive moments: the Puritan colonization and the Revolution and the Constitution (1775–1789). Contrary to historians of the day, Tocqueville gave as much… More

• French Political Thought from Montesquieu to Tocqueville: Liberty in a Levelled Society?

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  Dijn, Annelien de. French Political Thought from Montesquieu to Tocqueville: Liberty in a Levelled Society? Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011.
  From the publisher: This 2008 study makes a major contribution to our understanding of one of the most important and enduring strands of modern political thought. Annelien de Dijn argues that Montesquieu’s aristocratic liberalism – his conviction… More

• Montesquieu’s anti-Machiavellian Machiavellianism

  - Rahe, Paul A. “Montesquieu’s anti-Machiavellian Machiavellianism.” History of European Ideas 37, no. 2 (June 2011): 128–136.
  Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, mentions Niccolò Machiavelli by name in his extant works just a handful of times. That, however, he read him carefully and thoroughly time and again there can be no doubt, and it is also clear… More

• A Virtue for Courageous Minds: Moderation in French Political Thought, 1748-1830

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  Crăiuțu, Aurelian. A Virtue for Courageous Minds: Moderation in French Political Thought, 1748-1830. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2012.
  Political moderation is the touchstone of democracy, which could not function without compromise and bargaining, yet it is one of the most understudied concepts in political theory. How can we explain this striking paradox? Why do we often underestimate the… More

• Montesquieu and Modern Republicanism

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  Douglass, Robin. “Montesquieu and Modern Republicanism.” Political Studies 60, no. 3 (2012): 703–719.
  In this article I explore Montesquieu’s discussion of republics and the constitution of England in order to question the extent to which he should be accorded a central place in a tradition of modern republicanism. This involves challenging Paul… More

• Montesquieu’s Natural Rights Constitutionalism by Paul Rahe

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  Rahe, Paul A. “Montesquieu's Natural Rights Constitutionalism.” Social Philosophy and Policy 29, no. 02 (2012): 51–81.
  When Woodrow Wilson, in the course of his campaign for the Presidency in 1912, attacked Thomas Jefferson and Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, he knew what he was about—for the constitutionalism articulated by the latter and… More